Hunter's Hickok
by essenceofsparkle
Summary: Jimmy is headed for a lot of trouble, and some secrets of the past will be revealed as well.


Aloysious Hunter preferred to be called Teaspoon because Aloysious or Mr. Hunter made him sound like his father, or an old man. Well, he had to admit that he had over the years gained more than a few gray hairs, but he was far from old. Why, he felt like a young cold on the first day of summer. He had once heard the saying that a man is only as old as he feels. So Teaspoon figured he was far from being an old man.

Sitting in the tack room which also doubled as his bedroom of the Pony Express station is the town of Sweetwater, Teaspoon pondered the events of the day. He thought he might have bitten off just a bit more than he could chew. When he was offered the job as stationmaster of the Pony Express he hadn't hesitated to say yes. He had been married six times, yet he didn't have any children. There was just something about the idea of teaching a bunch you young men his bag of trick that played a nice tune in his mind.

There was something about one of the riders which he couldn't quite place. It was the cocky one with the gun hanging low on his hip. At the moment, Teaspoon couldn't recall his name. Shaking it off as his old mind playing tricks on him, Teaspoon pulled the blanket up over his shoulders and closed his eyes to sleep.

When Teaspoon woke up the following morning, he couldn't for the life of him remember what he had dreamed. All he knew for certain was that there was something important he had to remember. It had something to do with a woman, someone from his past. That much he was certain of. That was easy for a man to say who had been married six times and had more lovers than he could count on his hands and feet.

In silence he got up and dressed, ready to start the day.

At the breakfast table the only sounds that were made came from the newly made Pony Express riders, muttering about sore bottoms and being worked to death. That was as to be expected, Teaspoon thought to himself as he sat down at the end of the table. They would harden soon enough. Looking out over the table, Teaspoon was certain he had a fine bunch of boys working under his command. Right now, they we're just a little rough around the edges.

Buck Cross was a half-breed Kiowa who had been raised by his tribe, but for some reason he had decided he was better off in the white world. Teaspoon couldn't rightfully understand that. Most Indians took kinder to half-breeds than white people did to anyone who looked a little different from what was considered the norm. Buck didn't talk that much. Come to think about it, Teaspoon had never heard Buck utter a word unless it was something the young man thought important.

Smart boy, Teaspoon thought to himself, though he had to admit he was a little worried about Buck. It seemed that the young man had no desire to get to know the others. Teaspoon had to wonder about the boy's past. The day before he had even asked, though the only reply he had been offered was that it was his time to leave the village. Teaspoon could see that Buck had more than enough fight in him, so he had a feeling he was going to survive.

Ike McSwain was Buck's best friend. From the way Teaspoon saw the relationship between the two young men, they were more like brothers and he didn't have to wonder why that was. As a child, Ike had lost his hair to scarlet fever and Buck had been the one to give him a way of communication. Teaspoon had been told that the two met up at a Catholic mission school when they were both 13 or thereabout.

The Kiowa didn't keep calendars with days and months so Buck didn't really know how old he was. Sometimes the two young men shared glances as if they didn't have to talk to understand what the other one wanted to say. Teaspoon guessed that the two of them, together, had been through hell and back and they both knew they would make it as long as the stayed together.

William F. Cody had quickly established himself in the role of the resident loudmouth as well as the teller of tall tales. Teaspoon had to admit that even though the blond-haired rider never kept his mouth closed, he liked the man. Cody reminded him of a younger version of himself. Less that half of what he said seemed to be true, and the rest, it seemed, was made up right there on the spot.

Lou McCloud sat quietly next to Cody and only sometimes smiled at the other man's many antics. Lou was short and skinny for his age, but made up for it by being wiry and strong. That was the only reason Teaspoon thought it was good idea to keep him on the job. He could keep up and ride as well as the rest of them.

The Kid was also of the quiet sort, hard working and not afraid of getting his hands dirty. Teaspoon knew very little about this one's past. Come to think about it, he didn't even know the young man's real name. He didn't want to pry though as a person's past was his own unless it caused some sort of problem.

Jimmy Hickok sat next to the Kid, grumbling something about being overworked and aching muscles that he previously didn't know the existence of. When he noticed that Teaspoon had entered the room, he too, fell silent. The only sound that could be heard was of Cody telling one of his tall tales. With a smile on his lips, Teaspoon asked Buck to pass the biscuits.

Emma Shannon was the cook and had from the very beginning proclaimed herself as the mother of the entire enterprise. As she noticed Teaspoon move for the biscuits, she promptly knocked it out of his hand just as he was about to take a bit bite out of it. "You are not having a bite until you have said grace."

There was little Teaspoon could say or do, except mumble a "Yes, ma'am."

During the meal, Teaspoon couldn't help but to look at Jimmy and wonder what it was about him that seemed so familiar. He couldn't recall having seen Jimmy before. Usually, Teaspoon was fairly good at remembering faces, but there was just something about the young man that eluded him.

That had been a week ago today, and now that Teaspoon was relatively happy with the way the boys had learned his bag of tricks. Since he was so pleased, he decided that it would be a good idea to give them all the remainder of the day off. He had reconciled himself with the fact that he had forgotten what it was about Jimmy that seemed so familiar and why he wasn't able to put his finger on it.

There was a hidden reason as to why he had given them the day off. He wanted to know if they would be able to work together without him or Emma hovering over their shoulders, making sure they were on their best behavior.

As he had expected, Buck and Ike stuck pretty much to themselves, probably thinking they were not really welcome with the rest of the group. That would change soon enough, Teaspoon figured. Buck was teaching Ike some of the sign language, making Teaspoon smile at the comradeship the two shared.

Jimmy was busying himself challenging Kid to a shooting match, which Kid wanted no part of. Smart man, Teaspoon noted. Lou was writing in what Teaspoon thought was a journal as Cody was trying to tell him one of his stories. Lou didn't seem to be listening.

"Why don't you boys come with me into town, seeing as you haven't had a chance to take a good look at Sweetwater yet?" Emma put her hands firmly at her hips and looked out at her charges.

Ike and Buck were the first ones to saddle their horse. It looked to Teaspoon that Buck would rather be anywhere else but in town. He could not say that he blames the young man for thinking that way, knowing the way many people viewed Indians. Teaspoon decided that he would leave him alone unless trouble aroused. Sitting on the front porch, his hat nearly covering his eyes, he watched as his boys leave for town.

Upon entering the general store, all the riders could feel a tension so tense that it could very well be cut with a knife. It was obvious to all present that the shopkeeper, Mr. Tompkins, did not care for having the Pony Express riffraff, as he muttered under his breath, in his store.

"Get out of here," he said in a rough and grave voice. "Especially that Indian."

Buck let out a sigh before he exited the store. Lou looked at the rest of her colleagues a hard look before he followed Buck.

"You shouldn't let him treat you like that," Lou said as he caught up with him.

"It's his right, isn't it?" shrugged Buck as he turned to face Lou.

"No it isn't. He's just too stupid to see that you're a good person."

His cheeks blushed to a bright red and Buck did his best not to let it show. "Thank you, Lou. I … Um, I best get back to the station. I have some things that I want to get done before supper." Buck did not wait for Lou to answer before he mounted his horse and was out of town.

xXx

"So," Emma asked as all besides Buck returned home. "How was your first trip into Sweetwater? Did you see anything exciting?"

"It was great, Emma. You should have seen the..." Cody didn't say anything else because he remembered that Emma was a lady and a respectable one at that. And there were certain things that a respectable lady that Emma should know about. Besides Emma was the one that kept the food at the station so the last thing Cody wanted to do was to get on Emma's mean side.

Emma noticed Buck sitting there staring at his food and playing with it, pushing his fork back and forth through the contents on the plate.

"Buck, are you feeling well?" she asked.

"I'm fine," said Buck and stuffed a piece of meat in his mouth to prove his point.

It was right before bedtime. Some where playing cards while others were reading. Buck sat outside and stared at the stars. His mother had once told him that the stars were the ancestors watching over people on earth, making sure they were safe. Sure did one heck of a job, Buck thought bitterly before he shook his head as if to clear it.

*Here,* Ike signed and gave his friend a small package wrapped in brown paper. *I got this for you in town today. I figured you might like it.*

"You didn't have to do that," Buck said, almost wanting to refuse the gift, but the look on Ike's dace said that he'd better take it. It was a book. He used to love reading when he and Ike were at the orphanage. It was part of how he learned to speak English. Looking down upon the book he had been gifted, he let his fingers trace the title and the name of the author. _Wuthering Hights by Ellis Bell._

"Thanks," said Buck. "I'll let you know how I like it."

Jimmy had been watching Buck and Ike from a distance. He would ever admit it to anyone, but he wished that he could have a friendship like that with someone. Somethings just weren't meant to be. Jimmy had a hard time trusting people and he didn't think he could trust anyone like the two of them trusted each other.

Jimmy wasn't really sure how he felt about things. Everything at the Pony Express station was so strange and different from what he was used to. At the station, it seemed that everyone was treated with the same sort of respect, and it didn't matter that you've done something stupid because bygones were bygones and belonged in yesterdays. With gentle hands he cleaned his gun while thinking.

Without realizing it, his mind had floated back to how he had acquired the gun. It was after his father had been murdered that he left home, promising himself to never return. He had been young a stupid. He was hungry and in desperate need for a roof over his head. Running away didn't seem to be a well thought through plan. A judge in a small town was kind enough to take him in, in exchange for work of course. Jimmy, or rather, Jimmy's stomach jumped at the opportunity. The Judge, as he preferred to be called, had also taken an other boy in, and he and Jimmy were fast friends.

Jimmy had been so foolish then. He hadn't foreseen the Judge's intentions before the smacked him right in the face. He had trained both Jimmy and Brad to be gunman, a fact that Jimmy, at the time, rather liked. He had always wanted to carry a gun, but both of his parents had put their foot down and said that there was no way any son of theirs was going to be a gunfighter. That little fact didn't stop Jimmy from going after what he wanted. It all seemed like such a dream and it was, until the day the Judge set Jimmy and Brad up against each other.

They had been given identical guns and were told to take a shot at each other. Jimmy had ducked before they were even told to fire. That decision had caused Jimmy to be kicked out by the Judge and told never to return.

So, he would never be a gunfighter, but he still had the gun he had been given and it would stay with him forever as a reminder of his failures. He was not able to kill anyone and he didn't know whether or not he hated that part of himself.

"You seem about a million miles away."

Jimmy jumped at the voice and saw Teaspoon standing beside him. How could he have been so stupid? The Judge had told him that he was never to let anybody sneak up on him. "Actually, my mind was right here." Jimmy looked down at his gun without realizing the truth behind his words.

"That's a mighty fine gun you're wearing. It may cause you more trouble that it's worth, though." Teaspoon put a hand on Jimmy's shoulder and gave the boy a gentle smile in warning.

"Thanks." Jimmy shrugged the man's hand off of him and with a determined stride he disappeared out of the bunkhouse and into the night. That was the last thing Jimmy needed. He know that he was taught to respect those older than him, but he didn't think that counted when said elder were trying to shove his wisdom in Jimmy's face.

The night always calmed him, though he could not tell why. When push comes to shove, it really didn't matter. It was a warm night so no one had bothered to put the horses in the barn. Sundance, which was his horse, stood drowsily and munched on a few straws of hay. When she noticed Jimmy walking up to her, she lifted her head and eagerly sniffed around his pockets for the treats she knew he always carried around.

Laying down on his bunk, Jimmy pulled out the picture of his mother that he always kept under his mattress. Softly, he traced her features and hoped that she could see that her son finally had an honest job and was making something of himself. Jimmy knew that his mother always worried about him because he was constantly getting into fights and never paying attention in school. At the time he thought that sitting in a room all day would get him nowhere.

xXx

Jimmy had never held much stock in mornings. He simply didn't believe in them and he that was something he had made clear to the other riders on the first morning they were working together. Without it really being spoken, it had been decided that Jimmy didn't have many of the early morning chores. Instead, he made up for them after lunch. It was a system that Jimmy liked, because, in the end, it worked out in his favor.

It wasn't the sunlight that had woken him from slumber. That he was certain of. Jimmy shut his eyes and wished for the noise, whatever the source, would go away. It didn't, in fact, it moved into the bunkhouse. Getting annoyed, Jimmy stood up, still wrapped in the comfort of his blanket.

Seeing the chaos that had settled over the bunkhouse, Jimmy could do nothing but stare, his mouth wide open. Buck and Ike were carrying a bleeding Kid and laid the wounded man on the nearest bunk. Jimmy walked up to him and laid his blanket around Kid's body.

"You're a damn fool, you know that. There's a reason why we call that horse Powder Keg."

"Next time you try then," slurred Kid with a slight smile.

Jimmy shook his head and smiled back. Perhaps there was a chance of making some real friends around here.


End file.
